Sports: A Columbus Crew marriage proposal

Friday

Jul 7, 2017 at 3:50 PMJul 11, 2017 at 9:33 AM

Saying “I do” the Columbus Crew way

ANDREW KING THISWEEKNEWS.COM @ThisWeekAndrew

Forget the Jumbotron. Ryan Harris broke new ground in the realm of sporting-event marriage proposals when he pledged his love to girlfriend Lauren Comer. Harris and Comer are both devoted Columbus Crew fans who collect scarves of their favorite soccer teams. With that in mind, Harris incorporated a custom-made scarf into his plan—and received an assist from a Columbus Crew legend in the process.

Harris intended to propose during a tailgate prior to the Crew's April 29 match against New York City FC. Friends distracted Comer with a game of cornhole that obscured her view of Harris as he gathered family and more friends to stand behind him while he unveiled a customized scarf that read, “Will you marry me?” with personalized Crew SC logos and their names on the other side.

And at the perfect moment, Crew SC brand ambassador and de facto mascot Frankie Hejduk arrived to walk Comer to the big reveal, despite Harris only sending Hejduk a speculative message that essentially said “come by if you can.”

“He showed up at the perfect time anyway,” Harris says.

Comer said yes, and the pair immediately found themselves getting more attention than expected. Hejduk tweeted about the engagement, and Comer's favorite player, Ethan Finlay, congratulated the pair on Twitter.

The couple plan to marry next June. Will Crew paraphernalia play a role in the ceremony? “The scarves will definitely be involved in some way,” Harris says. “Beyond that, we haven't really gotten into it. I may have inadvertently set our colors.”